The Review of Korean Studies
- P-ISSN1229-0076
- E-ISSN2773-9351
- SCOPUS, ESCI
ISSN : 1229-0076
Social Confluence Theory, as Applied to Cases of Disability Status and Korean Identity
Abstract
This paper presents an exposition of social confluence theory, a concept of identity formation first introduced by Alex Lubet. The theory posits that the fundamental unit of identity in globalized, high technology, information-oriented societies such as the United States and South Korea is no longer a relatively stable unit such as the nation-state, ethnic group, faith community, nuclear or extended family, or individual. Rather, it is the status of the individual or group within the sociocultural or psychosocial encounter of the moment, which we call the social confluence. We first demonstrate the application of the theory with examples from the intersection of disability and music. To further illustrate the theory’s potential, we apply it to Korean identity, demonstrating the great mutability of that identity across different contexts or social confluences, using examples from South Korea and the United States, including international Korean adoptees, North Korean refugees, and Korean and other Asian-Americans in pan-Asian arts organizations. We conclude by proposing research topics in disability studies and Korean studies for which social confluence theory seems particularly apt, in particular the categorizations of people with Autistic Spectrum Conditions, while proposing extended research applications for the theory, with particular attention toward South Korea.
- keywords
- social confluence theory, disability, music, identity, Korean adoptees, minorities
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